Stop to Nurture your Soul. You’ll Be Glad You Did
Look deep into nature, and then you will understand everything better. —Albert Einstein
Recently, I spent some time in nature. This is where everything becomes clear. To get in touch with nature is to nurture me.
Imagine with me…
You are standing on a mountaintop in the cool morning air. As you breathe in you feel the coolness on the inside all the way to your core.
The air is clean and unpolluted. It is fresh, crisp, pure. It takes you back to when the Earth was first created and everything was new. You stand at the beginning of life and get to create everything you want it to be.
Standing at the water’s edge, peering into a lake of life you see fish, turtles, ducks and more, in the aquatic circle of life. The surface of the water reflects Pine trees, and the Golden Aspens catch the first rays of the sunrise. The Bristlecones wrap their trunks around each other in a hug from ancient trees of life that share the wisdom of a past we can never touch or understand.
Everything past and present come together in the glance into the mirror of that all-knowing lake.
Nature whispers knowledge no book can teach.
The smell is clean and pine-like.
Every impossibility is possible.
Nature nurtures my soul.
Get in touch with whatever it is that nurtures your soul in this way. Whatever it is, let that environment wash over you and believe that anything is possible.
Next, identify your needs and goals. Breathe in safety. Exhale fear. Let your longings live and feel where you are empty.
Let this place please the gaps.
Think about your emotional, mental, physical, and spiritual needs.
Consider what a satisfying life looks like for you. Wear it like you own it and color it pretty.
Nature always wears the colors of the spirit. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
What are your needs?
- Do you need a healthier relationship with yourself?
- Do you need rest, a sense of calm and peace?
- Do you need to discover who you are?
- Do you need to find your voice?
- Do you need to clear out physical or mental clutter?
- Do you need continuing education or personal development?
How will you fulfill those needs?
Count your blessings
Do you acknowledge how lucky you are? A lot of people I know keep journals to bookmark where they’ve been so they can look back at how they’ve grown.
I suck at journaling. I’ve tried it many times, but I’m a journaling failure. What I do often, a few minutes daily, is take note of what I’m grateful for. I don’t write them down, but I take mental note of where I am and some of the reasons I am grateful.
Gratitude makes sense of our past, brings peace for today, and creates a vision for tomorrow. — Melody Beattie
Set healthy boundaries
If you aren’t comfortable with setting boundaries, then make notes about how you would change interactions that cause you to feel uncomfortable or are offensive.
Know your limits about what you say yes or no to and don’t give too much. Pay attention to the areas where you feel angry, resentful or taken advantage of. Be willing to make reasonable compromises, but don’t be a doormat. If there’s something that’s a staunch no, then let your no be no.
No is a complete sentence.
If you are new to setting boundaries, it requires assertiveness and practice. Think about rearing children. A parent is unlikely to let someone treat their child or children badly. You need to stand up for yourself in similar ways.
Make sure your needs are met in the same way a loving parent makes sure his or her child’s needs are met.
Start with something small and flex the skill of setting boundaries with practice.
Follow-through is the magic of asserting boundaries.
Be assertive
When you first start acting assertively, you may be afraid that others will perceive you as mean or rude. Affirming your boundaries means that you value yourself, your needs, and your feelings. more than the thoughts and opinions of others. Being assertive does not mean that you are unkind. It means that you are being fair and honest while maintaining self-dignity, and self-respect.
The best way to set boundaries is to practice by telling someone that they’ve crossed yours.
Daring to set boundaries is about having the courage to love ourselves, even when we risk disappointing others. — Brene Brown
Get ongoing education or personal development
Take a class if necessary. Implementing and maintaining healthy boundaries helps anxiety disappear.
Earth and sky, woods and fields, lakes and rivers, the mountain and the sea, are excellent schoolmasters, and teach some of us more than we can ever learn from books. — John Lubbock
Other Tips:
- Meditate or practice relaxation therapy
- Surround yourself with positive people
- Practice kindness
- Exercise or do something you enjoy
- Get enough sleep/eat well/hydrate
- Seek new experiences
- Volunteer
- Laugh
Adopt the pace of nature: her secret is patience. — Ralph Waldo Emerson
Results
As I came down from that mountain, my thoughts became clear. I knew things I didn’t know I knew. Drive became focused and I took risks I wouldn’t otherwise have taken. Some are already paying off in big ways.
When you nurture your soul you come alive in ways you never knew possible.
Are you ready to come alive?
Take a break.
Change perspective.
Change location.
Nurture yourself.
Then prepare to do the impossible.
Go get ‘em!
